Military IT projects wracked with delays, increased costs, GAO finds

A U.S. government watchdog agency has found that nearly half of 14 large ongoing military IT projects are over budget and more than half are behind schedule.

U.S. military IT projects face a particularly dire set of risks, given their sheer size as well as the vast and far-flung user base they must serve.

But even with "flawless execution" multiyear projects such as those in the MAIS group "still face the prospect of being at least partially outdated by completion," said analyst Michael Krigsman , CEO of consulting firm Asuret, via email. "Therefore, the government should also find ways to reduce the scope of its projects by breaking them down into smaller, more manageable components," Krigsman added.